Intermediate Flounder

The Intermediate Flounder, scientifically known as Asterorhombus intermedius, is a tropical marine fish found primarily in reef-associated environments. It thrives at depths ranging from 1 to 96 meters (3 to 315 feet), inhabiting areas with sandy and muddy bottoms, often in protected bays and lagoons. This species is recognized by its distinctive body pattern, featuring grey spots with black dots and dark edges.

The Intermediate Flounder is active during the day, feeding on animals that live on the ocean floor. With a maximum length reaching up to 20 centimeters (about 8 inches), it is sometimes caught by divers exploring these environments.

The flounder lacks dorsal and anal spines but has between 77 and 84 dorsal soft rays and 55 to 62 anal soft rays. One of its defining characteristics is a nearly continuous bony ridge that extends from the front of the lower eye to the back of the upper eye, along with a narrow interorbital space, which is always wider than the diameter of its largest eye.

This species is distributed across the Indo-Pacific region, spanning from the 🌊 Red Sea to 🇹🇴 Tonga, extending north to southern 🇯🇵 Japan and south to the Indo-🇦🇺 Australian Archipelago. The name Asterorhombus comes from the Greek words 'aster,' meaning star, and 'rhombos,' meaning parallelogram, reflecting its shape and appearance.